Identification: These agaves are said to resemble giant sea urchins or
balled up hedgehogs. I’ll go with the hedgehog comparison.
While most agaves contain a couple of dozen leaves, this one contains hundreds. They tend to grow in
dense colonies. Plants are
rounded mounds up to 24" (60 cm) high and 3' (1 m) around, with leaves 10-20" (25-50 cm) long and
¼-½" (6.3-12 mm) around. In cross section, the leaves are rhomboidal: like a skewed rectangle,
but with top and bottom depressed. Flowers form crooked spikes up to 8' (2.4 m) in height.
The flowering spike is crooked, 5-8' (1.5-2.4 m) tall, with reddish-purple flowers that
bloom between July and August.